Aethan followed them into the house, the smell of crushed herbs and incense adding a soothing ambience to the place. He shut the door behind him.
The kitchen door swung open, and Lila entered the living room. A smile of relief swept over her face when she saw Echo. These two females were her family. Aethan understood that, but witnessing their deep affection for her touched him. It comforted him to know she had people who cared about her before he’d come into her life.
“It’s good to see you again, warrior,” Lila said, then she turned to Echo, concern filling her dark eyes.
“Gran.” Echo hurried over. She kissed Lila’s cheek and hugged her. “I’m sorry I worried you.”
“What happened, child?”
“A bad dream. That’s all.” Echo stepped back, shrugged off her coat, and hooked it on the coat rack in the corner of the room.
“Kira told me what occurred. You shouldn’t have left.”
“I know, Gran, but I had to. I just wanted to find a way to deal with it. I thought if I went there, to the place where it happened, maybe I’d understand why I keep having these dreams.”
“In the night?” Kira snapped.
“Yes. It had to be.”
“And did you?”
Echo shook her head. “No.”
Kira growled. Lila sighed. “Kira dear, let me talk with Echo. Go prepare a tea-tray for us.”
Harrumphing, Kira flounced off.
Echo turned to Lila. Aethan sensed her relief her friend wasn’t there to pick apart everything she said. “Why, Gran? Why am I having these dreams? Demoniis, I understand, after what happened when I was young, but Tamsyn? And the man in a navy robe?”
“What man in a navy robe?” Aethan asked her.
She frowned as if trying to recall...a memory? A dream? He wasn’t sure.
“When I was six, my foster brother hurt me and left me lying in a ditch.”
Aethan’s mouth tightened. He remembered what Lila had shown him of Echo’s foster family. He had to force himself to listen and not go out there, find those abusive humans, and make them pay as his heart demanded. This was about her, he reminded himself.
“I don’t remember much,” she said, rubbing her eye. “Just the pain before I blacked out. But when I awoke, I had no injuries. I always thought it was a dream. Except recently, I have flashes of this man, healing me and telling me he’ll take away the pain...”
Aethan felt as if something cold had slithered over him. The only man in a navy robe he knew of was worlds away. The one who’d kicked him out of Empyrea.
No. Way. That old bastard, Allatus, never left Empyrea.
“Being psychic, you’re always going to touch on the supernatural side of things, even in your dreams,” Lila said as she stroked Echo’s arm, her expression tender. “But Tamsyn, you need to let her go. It’s why she haunts you. Let her soul find rest and you will finally have peace, too.”
After a long moment, Echo sighed and nodded. “It’s hard, but I’ll try.” She blinked and rubbed her eye again. “Gran? Do you have eye-drops? One of your vines attacked me on the porch.”
A smile tugged Lila’s mouth, easing the strain on her face. “Let me have a look.” Angling Echo’s face to the light, she examined her eye. “There’s a rip in your contact lens,” she murmured. Then she cupped his mate’s face. “It’s time, child.”
Echo stiffened. Aethan felt her distress like a huge wave crashing over him. He failed to understand why she was upset over torn contact lenses. Hell, he hated the damn things.
She cast him a quick look and reached for her coat. She withdrew a small case then headed for the mirror hanging in the hallway. A few minutes later, she made her way back into the lounge. Still sensing her unease, he crossed over to her and brushed a hand over her bent head. “I’m glad you’ve taken them off—”
She looked up.
And the world around him stopped. Aethan felt as if someone had taken a vice to his chest. He couldn’t breathe. His lungs seized.
Echo stared at him, pain flashing in her eyes, and then she walked away. He stared after her in utter shock.
No!
Damn it! No. Not her. Not his mate.
CHAPTER 21
Andras paced around his concealed chambers. No one, not even a smidgen of light, was allowed in this walled-off room, except for the torches he burned while it was in use. He had planned and plotted too long for this and would allow nothing to stand in his way. As for his brother—locked up safe in the outer caverns of the lower Strata of Hell—too bad, really. Couldn’t have him running to their sire with what little knowledge he possessed.
Andras spread out the tattered piece of parchment on the table. Finally, after five years he knew what the scrolls had hidden.
A true souls-joining will set her free.
A whimper at his feet drew his attention. “Is this true, what it says here?” He flicked a finger at the ancient scroll. “I must mate with the prophesied one to bind her to me? Lie and you will never see daylight again.”
He smiled at the female. And let his lips peel back from his teeth, baring his fangs. Fear was a motivating factor and one he relished.
The girl, cowering on the ground, nodded, her long, dark hair obscuring her pale face. Her fear filled the chamber.
He didn’t want to have a mortal tied to him. But no matter. He would go after the female himself and do what needed to be done. That way he could complete the joining as soon as he captured her.
During the short test run he made to the mortal realm, he’d gone to the alley in Chinatown, where he’d been five years ago when he’d made a crucial error and took the soul of the blonde female. Now he was thankful for the first time that he hadn’t killed the prophesied one. For five years she’d stayed in his thoughts. Now he knew why. It was meant to be. Great things were destined for him when he finally found her. And she did taste delicious.
The excruciating pain of leaving the Dark Realm had been worth it.
Andras grabbed the terrified female off the floor and looked into her pathetic little face. “Taking on my brother’s image worked the first time. But I don’t care for the short timespan it gives me. I want longer.”
The damn glamor had worn off far too soon, and his binding hauled him back to the Dark Realm. Just in time, too, because that blue-haired bastard had arrived.
“Y–you must drink your brother’s blood.” Her pale green eyes blinked in fear. “An ounce of it to take on his essence. It will fool the magic that keeps you locked onto this realm. Three-three drops of the mixture I–I made will keep your eyes clear, too. But it will fade after a few hours.”
“I’ll just replenish that. Will the sun affect me?”
She nodded. “I–I can’t change what is. It’s only a glamor.”
That meant sunlight would burn his corneas and kill him. Didn’t matter. He would fix all that soon. “If it doesn’t work, I’ll take your weak little soul. And I won’t spare you any pain.”
His second-in-command had done well, finding him this little oracle. He dropped her back to the floor, strolled around her, and nudged her bare foot with his shoe. “Why don’t you beg me for your life, little human? Everyone else does.”
He grabbed her hair and dragged her across the floor, taking pleasure in her cries of pain, the fear in her eyes. Black claws split from his fingers. He raked one down her face and watched as blood dripped from the gash. He leaned in and licked the trail, enjoying her terror.
“My lord,” Bael said from the chamber entrance. “We found the female.”
Andras shoved the oracle aside. “Well, little human, it’s your lucky day.”
Time to get to work.
CHAPTER 22
Echo stood by the open door, listening to Kira hum as she gathered teacups from a cupboard. Gran’s kitchen always made Echo feel better. The myriad scents of roots, herbs, and flowering plants infused the air. Copper pans hung from the low ceiling, with a row of sweet smelling flowers strung up t
o dry beside them. But the familiar smells did nothing to loosen the constriction in her chest or ease her throat gone tight with tears.
The shock on Aethan’s face hurt. She’d known it would, which was why she never wanted to reveal her eyes to him. To anyone.
Kira turned and smiled when she saw her. “I’m sorry I yelled at you before—hey, what’s wrong?” She left the cups on the counter and hurried over. “Aah. You took off the lenses.” She reached behind her and shut the door. “If he’s weirded out because of your peepers, better you know, right?” she said, rubbing Echo’s arm in a soothing gesture.
Echo’s heart twisted in denial. Kira’s words, meant for comfort, hurt far worse than if she’d said nothing. Echo closed her eyes, trying to will the pain away like she’d done so many times before. Only this time, nothing worked. It went too deep. Old hurts pierced her protective shields.
‘Devil’s eyes.’
‘She’s Satan’s spawn. That’s why she ain’t got no parents.’
‘Freak. Weirdo.’
The kitchen door opened. The air changed, became charged with his presence, and Echo knew Aethan had come after her. She didn’t want him to see her so devastated, but there was nowhere to go.
“Give us a moment,” she heard him say.
She gripped Kira’s hands tightly as if that would prevent what had to be faced. But confronted with her friend’s anxious expression, she managed a little smile and released her. “I’ll be fine.”
“All right. I’m just a yell away, if you need me.”
After the door closed behind Kira, Echo didn’t hear his footsteps, but his seductive scent surrounded her. He was right behind her. “Are you going to look at me?”
His warm breath stirred the wispy strands of hair on her neck and a frisson of desire flared low in her belly. God, no. Not now! She couldn’t handle wanting him, too, when all this was happening. His hands settled on her shoulders.
“Don’t.” She broke away from him and hurried for the door, but found her way blocked. She hated his ability to move so fast.
“Echo—”
She shook her head, cutting him off. “Let’s not pretend, all right?” She kept her gaze on his chest, unable to stop the bitterness of her past from spilling free. “Can’t blame you for being weirded out. I know, they’re real freaky. People always react the way you did.” Her voice hitched, but she plowed on, determined to get it all out. “Did you know they glow? Just like an animal’s do at night, when I’m upset, excited, take your pick. Don’t worry, you won’t see them again. I have a replacement pair of lenses.”
Then she waited for him to walk away. Like they all did.
***
Aethan knew he had to put right the unintentional hurt he’d caused her with his moronic moment of shocked gaping because of what he suspected. “You think I care what a person looks like?”
She rubbed the scar on her forehead. “It doesn’t matter.”
“It damn well does, when you can’t stand to look at me.”
Her gaze snapped to his. “You want to take a closer look?” She glared at him. “Go ahead.”
She was looking for a fight, but he refused to give her one. Gods, but her eyes were a punch in his gut. Some humans were born with dual-colored eyes, but hers were different. One was a pale, pearly gray and the other burned brightly, like golden flames. Then he saw the amber-colored ring around the pale iris. Urias! They were stunning.
Pyre and rime.
Fire and ice.
It had never been about her powers. It was about her eyes. She’d be able to see into the supernatural, see right through any kind of glamor, into other worlds.
She’d see through the veils where the rifts formed.
She dropped her gaze.
“Do not hide them from me. They’re exquisite.”
Bitter laughter spilled free. “You say that because you know I’m upset. At least you didn’t stone me.”
Her mouth clamped shut. Aethan grasped her arms. “What?”
“Nothing.”
He tilted her face up with a finger then brushed her bangs aside. Finally, he understood why she kept her hair so long that it fell into her eyes. He traced the star-shaped scar just above her left brow. “Echo, who hurt you? Who did this?”
She stepped away from him, her voice so soft, he was grateful for his heightened hearing. “Some kids in the neighborhood didn’t like the way I looked. Stoning me was their way of making it known. My foster brother would egg them on by calling me names.” Now her words spewed out. “It was the same day he snapped and came after me because his father caught him touching me the day before and punished him. He–he punched and kicked me. It hurt really bad. I lost consciousness.”
Aethan’s jaw hurt from his clenched teeth. He pulled her stiff body into his arms, holding onto his fraying temper. There was little he could do, short of changing her past, to make it all better for her. And despite his formidable abilities, he couldn’t turn back time. He hugged her.
After a long moment, she let herself relax against him and told him the rest. “After Damon adopted me, he seemed to understand how I felt...well, mostly because I refused to go to school or leave the loft. So he got the lenses for me and life became bearable again.”
Aethan raised her face to his and brushed the shadows under her eyes with his thumb. Now that she no longer shielded her eyes, an ethereal quality seemed to settle over her. He pressed his lips to the scar on her forehead.
“You’re amazing.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Beautiful.” He kissed her lips. “Smart and brave. A little less brave and I’d finally be able to sleep at night, but I wouldn’t change a thing about you.”
A reluctant smile curled her mouth.
And his heart eased to see her smiling again. He ushered her out of the kitchen. “Come, let’s get out of here. There’s something I want to check out.”
***
A half-hour later, Aethan drove through Times Square and parked the Range Rover across from Starbucks, a block from Demon Alley. Nightfall settled in like a shroud, and people rushed about, wanting to get home before the evening got too chilly. Aethan came around the vehicle and opened the door for her.
It surprised him when she refused to get out.
“Why are we here?” she asked him.
“This won’t take long.”
She arched a delicate brow at him. “Aren’t you afraid demoniis would come after me?”
“I won’t let them. Come on.”
She sighed and got out of the Range Rover. After locking the vehicle, Aethan draped his arm around her shoulders and headed into the alley which looked like it suffered from a bad case of diarrhea. Damn place stank to high heaven. He carefully maneuvered them away from the sludge that coated the asphalt.
His tattoo remained still. Except for the rift, he could sense nothing supernatural in the area. But something felt different. It tugged at his psyche. Not evil, more like it waited in anticipation. Whatever the hell it was, he wasn’t keeping Echo here another minute.
“Aethan?” Echo murmured. “I was here the other night—”
At her words, blood pounded in his veins and snagged at his temper. “Dammit, Echo. You came here alone?”
She pulled away from him. “Don’t yell at me. It wasn’t by choice. Something drew me here and no, I didn’t get hurt.”
“Gods, Echo. I’ll be the first immortal to suffer a heart attack,” he growled.
He scanned the area and picked up on Blaéz’s presence farther down the alley. The Celt sat on the rooftops, keeping guard. He guessed it was better than wading through this sea of crap.
“What was it you felt?” He turned when she didn’t answer and found her with a hand pressed to her stomach. “Echo?”
She shook her head and glanced around the shit-pit.
“What is it?” He shielded her with his body. His senses scanning furiously, but he picked up nothing.
“I don’t know. It feels the same. Like
the last time.” She rubbed her middle again, as if in pain.
“Come on, let’s go back.”
“No. Wait.” She laid a hand on his chest, stopping him, and inhaled deeply. “It’s–it’s okay.”
His senses on alert, he waited for whatever threat it was, ready to grab her and dematerialize if need be. It was the worst damn idea, bringing her to this place with the tear in the veils. She wasn’t ready for this encounter.
As he kept watch, her body went still. Her eyes lids drifted shut. He called her name but she didn’t respond. He waited, his edginess increasing with each passing second. Then, like a fading bulb, her knees buckled, and she fell limp into his arms.
***
Aethan muted the flat-screen, pulled out his cell phone, and called Blaéz. They rarely used their mind-link, except in dire emergencies. Besides, it gave him something to do other than wear out a hole in the carpet while Echo remained in a deep sleep.
“I left the Range Rover near Demon Alley.”
“No problem. I’ll get it.”
“Thanks man. Owe you one.”
“What happened?”
He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I took Echo there. Don’t know what the hell I was thinking.”
“Makes two of us. She’s okay?”
“Yeah. She’s asleep. I’m at home with her.” Aethan dropped into the armchair.
“All right then.” A pause. “You think she could be The One?” Blaéz asked him.
“I’m not sure. Gods, I hope not.”
“Shit, man...right, later then.”
“Yeah, okay. You need me, call.”
He rang off, pushed the phone back in his pocket, and shut his eyes.
***
Aethan smelled her before he saw her. Then a soft kiss was pressed to the corner of his mouth. He breathed in her scent, let it settle into his lungs, then opened his eyes to take in her smiling face. She rested her arms on his spread thighs, kneeling between them. She still wore the navy T-shirt he’d put her to bed in. The possessive male in him liked seeing her covered in his things. He reached out and caressed her cheek.
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